


Alive

by cookieming99



Category: SHINee
Genre: M/M, Slow Burn, Survival, Zombie Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2019-12-18
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:26:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21805876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cookieming99/pseuds/cookieming99
Summary: July 2022 - Seoul, South Korea.North Korea launches a biochemical weapon causing a viral outbreak near the national borders of North and South Korea.In an attempt to prevent the disease from spreading across the country, the government requires citizens to take the vaccine shot they developed. However, things only get worse.The monsoon season this year has brought about heavier than usual rains. One fine day, Kim Kibum and his friends gather together in his apartment to have home cooked lunch.As he washes the dishes, a torrential downpour occurs. Power goes out ensuing an eerie silence in his apartment. He turns around only to see all his friends fallen to the ground, limp and lifeless.
Relationships: Choi Minho & Kim Kibum | Key
Comments: 4
Kudos: 2





	1. You're My Rescue

_Live. Live. Live. Live._  
_Live. Live. Live. Live._  
_SHINee's back._

The rain pours heavily as I wash the utenils after a sumptuous home cooked lunch while my friends chill in the living room. One of our B-side songs, Alive, plays in the background. Through the window just above the kitchen sink, I watch entranced at the dark gray scenery, slanted thick raindrops fall heavily on surfaces outside.

Despite the downpour and strong winds, a cool wind manages to enter the open window and gently caresses my warm skin. I look down to squirt watered down dish-washing liquid gel on the spoons and forks I have been washing. I get taken aback when a strong gust of wind blows violently at the curtains now fluttering erratically.

 _Is there a typhoon?_ I try to recall the weather forecast I saw just this morning.

I turn my head to my right when I notice something in my periphery on the counter beside the sink. A tiny pile of dried strips of grass looking like it came off a bird's nest now sits there. _How did...it wasn't there before._ I dismiss my thoughts by concluding it must have entered through the open window. An unsettling fear suddenly takes over me and I look back.

A strike of lightning slashes across the cloudy sky followed by crashing thunder. My mind desperately tries to process the scene unfolded before me. All my friends are lifeless. The lights flicker a few times running on low voltage then electricity goes off. I hear screams and wails outside, honking horns, someone frantically stepping on gas causing wheels to screech on cement...chaos.

My heartbeat pounds against my chest, tears threaten to roll down my eyes amidst sorrow and confusion. _What happened? Why are my friends dead? Where am I? Am I dreaming?_

_I saw when the light was off  
The floorless darkness  
The only way to escape this place  
Is to find you*_

I hear my ringtone interrupt the dead silence in the room and chaos outside. My hands fumble to find my handphone at the counter while my body limply slides down, weak and trembling in fear. Once my phone is in my hands, I frantically swipe to answer the call, checking the caller being the least of my worries.

"Kibum?"

 _Minho._ I let out a audible sigh. I am relieved to hear his voice at a confusing time like this.

"Good God you're alive." He also releases the breath he has been holding in. "Are you at your apartment?"

"Yes. All my friends are..." _Lifeless_. But I cannot bring myself to say it out loud. Tears now stream down my cheeks and I finally break down.

He hears my sobbing so he tries his best to reassure me. "Shh...Kibum. It's OK. I'm here. I'm heading there now. I'm getting you out of there. Please wait for me." 

I hear honking noises on the other end of the line. "Minho?"

Silence.

"Minho? Minho!" My lips tremble as I desperately call out to him for fear another one of my dearly beloved might have been taken away.

"Kibum? Sorry. I just had to deal with something. I'm at the parking lot now."

"God, don't scare me like that." _You're the only one I have left._

"I need to hang up now. There's a few zombies I have to fight through. See you there. Get ready. Pack what's necessary." _Zombies?_

"OK, be careful. I love you." My heart beats fast as I mumble the last sentence. _Did he hear it? The phone beeped when I said it._ I better get the things I need.

I get up, almost stumbling forward, but I hold on to the edge of the counter to keep my balance. Just then, I hear barking noises.

"Comme des! Garcons!"

Good Lord, they're alive! At least I still have them. They both tackle me and lick my face, definitely happy and relieved to see me.

Minho cannot say no to bring them with us. I'm ready to fight him to keep them. I hug them both and put on their leashes.

I prepare my things in a rather large duffel bag, all necessities, some clothes, food, water and some skin care products, just in case. Oh and, some knives, if I heard Minho right about fighting zombies. I'm not sure how to fight them but Minho might need the knives. I take some from the expensive designer cutlery he gave me as a housewarming present a few years back when I moved out of the dorm.

The door creaks open followed by light footsteps up a flight of stairs in my apartment. It's definitely Minho. He knows the code on the door lock.

Despite our constant bickering and arguments, he is pretty much reliable. He's never used the code to break in and do as he pleases. He texts me whenever he plans to visit, which is not that often. I rarely answer calls but he knows how to contact me best and, for that, I always give him the pass. So this is the first time he's called to come over. It's an emergency after all.

He finds me in the kitchen still packing food and beverage for who knows how long we could go on. He's drenched. I forgot it is still raining outside.

"Minho! My God! You need to change."

"Shh! We can't attract _them_." He covers my mouth with hand and looks to the door where he just came from. He removes his hand once he confirms the coast is clear.

"Them?" I almost squeak in fear and confusion but remember to speak in a hushed voice.

"Zombies. I told you over the phone. Are you ready? We leave now." Minho briefs me with our exit plan but my thoughts are only filled with worry of his current state, blood-stained and drenched.

"You need to change." I interrupt him and move to my closet room to get some clothes for him.

"Wait." He grabs my arm, a concerned stern look evident in his eyes. "Let me go with you. We don't know when your friends will wake up." _Wake up? But they're dead!_

"They're dead, Minho." Anger takes over me. I can feel tears well up at the corner of my eyes. "They're never going to-"

A loud horrific groan echoes through the living room before I could take out my anger and frustration at him.

"Oh my God-" Minho once again covers my mouth, placing a finger over his lips as reminder to keep quiet. _Was that a zombie? How did it get in my apartment? Oh my God, could it be-?_

Minho instructs me to stay put and stay as quiet as possible. He moves out silently, making sure his footsteps are light enough that even he couldn't hear. A few seconds pass, only a stabbing sound makes the groaning disappear. Minho comes back with more fresh blood stain on his hand and shirt.

"We have to hurry out of here!" He pulls my arm, his voice sounding certainly urgent. At a time like this, I have no right to resist so I hurriedly pick up a few of my basic clothes for him to change into later. It might be best to change after we safely reach his car since we still have to fight through zombies.

"Come on!" I allow him to drag me out of the closet room. Comme des and Garcons, clearly looking terrified with their tails between their legs, follow us out, their leashes trailing behind them since I forgot to pick them up.

He scowls as he sees them. "You can't take them."

"They're alive, Minho! I can't leave them here. And I've decided to fight you should you disagree." I pick up the leashes asserting defiance. They aren't staying behind. Minho has to understand that.

He looks at me sternly for a second but then, whatever was in his thoughts, he lets go in surrender, shaking his head. He must have thought 'we can't have extra baggage right now' but he knows how persistent I am. And I guess he cares for the dogs too. He picks up Garcons and instructs me to pick up Comme des. I win.

He heaves a sigh. We ready ourselves one last time before heading out into the unknown. I offer him a knife just in case he needs it. He refuses. He shows me he already has one. A swiss knife. How manly. I should have known. He has killed one of my turned friends after all.

I look back at my apartment one last time. I watch each of my friends lying there limp, lifeless. I see my turned friend who Minho killed. My lips quiver as a tear rolls down from the corner of my eye. She is my closest friend. _Why did it have to be her?_

Minho must have seen me struggle to hold back an emotional break down. He gently takes my hand in his and tug on it. I look up at him and see his gentle eyes looking at me despite sensing his worry. Somehow, it is reassuring even just for a few seconds.

After making sure I'm fine, his eyes shifts to being serious again, dropping all emotion to make it easier for him to deal with their current stiuation. He tells me one last time that things will be fine, at least once they get together with the members, if they can find them as soon as possible.

"Let's go." He says.

I take a deep breath. "OK."

We leave my apartment, leaving behind all the luxuries I've held so dear, leaving behind all my lifeless friends this apocalyptic day took away from me.

As the door closes behind us, I hear groaning noises inside my apartment. They have finally turned into walking dead bodies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me a while to finally figure out how to write the zombie apocalypse AU I've had in mind. I thought it will be in the drafts forever but thanks to the rain today, I wrote down the scene that crossed my mind and decided it would fit a zombie apocalypse AU.
> 
> I hope you can let me know what you think or what you expect/look forward to in this fic.
> 
> [*] Alive, SHINee, Odd Album


	2. I Will Fight

We cautiously descend the building through the emergency exit stairs to avoid encountering more zombies. Minho is capable of fighting them no doubt. He's proven it inside my apartment. However, he wishes to reserve his energy for saturated areas. Killing multiple zombies requires speed and agility to avoid getting bitten. Plus, he considers having Comme des and Garcons with us a handicap. 

He also assumes I am useless when it comes to fighting. But, if push comes to shove, perhaps I can recall my training during the Three Musketeers and The Mask of Zorro musicals. My cutlery knives will definitely come in handy.

"Kibum." Minho speaks in a hushed voice, just enough for me to hear. "You wait here first. I have to check the lobby for zombies."

Before I could protest, he already sets out to scout the area leaving Garcons on the ground, scared and confused. I hurriedly grab the leash before Garcons runs off to where he shouldn't be. 

I peek through the small opening of the door to see what Minho is doing. He weaves through a horde of zombies killing each of them on stealth mode. Swift. Silent. Efficient. His training with the Marines shows.

He stabs the last zombie dead center on the forehead without conscience. He must have seen me drop my jaw in awe at that last solid kill because he's now walking back with a cocky smirk. "Were you watching?"

"Yes. You seem like you've done this for a long time."He picks Garcons up, rocking him a little to comfort him.

"Good. Now you know where and how to kill them. You can't just rely on me to fight every zombie for you from now on."

"Wait, what? Are you underestimating me? I've watched a good number of zombie movies to figure out on my own how to kill them." _Ugh. He often gets on my nerves. And at a time like this?? I thought we were in a hurry._

"That's the spirit! Now, we have to get to my car. There will be more zombies outside and I can't watch out for you." He looks at the dogs with a pensive frown. "Comme des and Garcons will be a problem."

"We can't leave them. That is non-negotiable." I can see him struggle to figure this out but leaving Comme des and Garcons behind will eat away at my conscience.

"How far is it to your car?" I ask. Maybe I can come up with a solution.

"I parked as close as possible but it's still probably more than fifty meters away." He unconsciously rubs his chin in deep thought. "I can't get the car near the entrance either. It's blocked."

 _Ottoke? Am I really going to say goodbye to them now?_ A hand reaches out to pat my shoulder. Minho senses my distress. I look up, mouth trembling, eyes desperately pleading for him to figure this out no matter what.

Minho sighs. He's most likely thought of a plan that will require him to do most of the fighting and killing. I understand the situation. My hoping that the day I have to choose between two things I can't leave behind will never come has been jinxed. I can't trade him for Comme des and Garcons.

_Wait._

"Minho, I have an extra backpack."

"What?"

"I mean, it's a foldable backpack. You can put Garcons in it and I can put Comme des in my bag."

"Hmm. That could work. Why pack one though? I mean, of all things, why pack something unnecessary?"

"It's a 'necessity' now." I smile at him, feeling proud of myself for coming up with a brilliant idea. Hands-free, we can navigate through hordes of zombies and fight them when necessary.

"OK, are you ready?" Minho asks as he adjusts the backpack with Garcons inside. I open the zipper a little to provide ventilation.

"Yes." I also adjust Comme des in my duffel bag. Only half his body fits so the other half hangs out of the bag. I instruct him not to move around as he might fall off. I prepare my cutlery knife as well. Minho says I have to fight. Then so be it.

We make our way to the now empty lobby. There is still a downpour outside. Of all the apocalyptic movies I've watched, none of them are set on a rainy season.

"Let's go." Minho makes his way outside. I cautiously followed, nevermind getting soaked in heavy rainfall.

As we walk through disarrayed vehicles and debris, I notice the zombies around us are only standing in place. They're probably distracted by the sound of rain hitting the ground heavily that they didn't sense our movements.

However, there are others that attack us, probably capable of sensing through body heat, but Minho manages to kill them before they can chomp on us. One, two, three...he's probably killed more than ten now excluding the ones before we met up. 

Honestly, he looks cool fighting the zombies. He reminds me of those skilled characters in movies who usually end up dying because they have to save the weaker characters. _Wait. I can't be a burden to him. I don't want to be that character I often get mad at for being too stupid and helpless._

We approach an area where a horde of probably twenty or so zombies blocks our way to Minho's car. He decides we make a run for it this time since he won't be able to manage that many with just his swiss knife. He points to his car, instructing me to take the safest route. He says we both make a run for it separately.

I prepare myself. He counts one to three and we're off. He passes through the horde to lure them away from me so I can run to the car parked nose out without a hitch. I successfully make it. The coast is clear where I am now. I see him running towards me, a few of the zombies who sense body heat trail him. They seem to be running instead of just dragging their feet. I've always thought zombies can't run. This makes it way scarier than the ones in the movies.

In an attempt to help him shake off the running zombies, I aim at one of them and swing my arm to throw the cutlery knife I have been holding. It almost pierces through Minho but he was quick enough to take a side step which sent the knife through a zombie instead. Not centered but at least it pierced through the forehead.

Minho swears at me silently, only hand gestures and huge eyes about to pop out indicate he is furious. I only smile sheepishly at him and shrug. _That's the best I can do._ Minho turns around when he hears a thud. He sees the zombies trailing behind topple down the fallen one I killed. With this, Minho took the chance to escape them.

As he approaches the car, he removes the backpack while still running. Then in a swift motion, he opens the car door and places the backpack at the back seat as he seats himself at the driver seat. "Hurry!"

I enter the car, duffel bag on my lap and hurriedly close the door. Minho turns on the car and, without hesitation, steps on the gas. The car zooms out attracting all zombies nearby but we only speed through them, leaving them behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What kind of duffel bag does Kibum have that it seems to contain everything and could still fit Comme des in? Sorry for leaving Garcons in the backpack. Kibum will get him out of there in the next chapter.
> 
> I hope you look forward to the next chapter. I look forward to it. I already somehow figured out the general plot for this fic.


End file.
